Cancer is the most dangerous threat to firefighter health and safety today. --Firefighter Cancer Support Network Did you know that cancer is responsible for 2/3 of the career firefighter line-of-duty deaths? Studies show that firefighters have a ... [Read More]
About Brian D. Lawenda, M.D.
Find Out if Your Treatment is Working with the Signatera Blood Test
Is your cancer treatment working? Is your cancer still in remission? You can find out with this state-of-the-art precision medicine blood test, Signatera. The earlier we detect a cancer recurrence or progression during treatment, the sooner we can ... [Read More]
Detect Cancer With Whole Body MRI
While current guidelines recommend that we screen for breast, prostate, colorectal, cervical and lung cancers, over 70% of all cancer deaths are caused by other cancer types which we do not commonly screen for. Since 40% of us will develop cancer in ... [Read More]
Acoustic neuroma (vestibular schwannoma)
An acoustic neuroma, also known as a vestibular schwannoma, is a rare benign (non-cancerous) growth that develops on the eighth cranial nerve. This nerve runs from the inner ear to the brain and is responsible for hearing and balance. Hearing loss in ... [Read More]
Predict What Drugs Kill Your Cancer The Best
Everyone's tumor responds differently to cancer drug treatments, so why do we continue to use the same drug regimens for each patient with the same type of cancer? In this short video, I briefly discuss an alternative approach to drug selection, ... [Read More]
Every Cancer Patient Should Be Offered Genetic Testing
A recent JAMA study, of 3607 men with a personal history of prostate cancer, found that 17.2% were found to carry a hereditary genetic mutation predisposing them to cancer. Importantly, 37% of these men did not qualify (at time of testing) for ... [Read More]
Rapid Antigen Tests Are Very Good “Contagiousness” Tests
Rapid antigen testing detects if you have enough virus to be contagious. It only takes 15 minutes to get the result and they have a sensitivity of 97% for identifying contagiousness! A COVID test that is relatively inexpensive (BinaxNOW is $7 each), ... [Read More]
Detect Over 50 Cancers With The Galleri Blood Test
I want to tell you about one of the MOST exciting developments in early cancer detection, in years. It’s called Galleri, a state of the art test that can detect the presence of over 50 different cancers with a 99.5% specificity with one simple blood ... [Read More]
Optimizing Your Immune System
Are you interested in learning how functional medicine tests can be used to determine if you have underlying, silent issues that impair your immune system? Dr. Brian Lawenda (Northwest Cancer Clinic/GenesisCare) discusses key driving factors in ... [Read More]
Get Screened For Colorectal Cancer
Dr. Brian Lawenda (Northwest Cancer Clinic/GenesisCare) discusses when you should start getting screened for colorectal cancer and a discussion of the non-invasive (FOBT, FIT, stool DNA/Cologuard, CT colonography/virtual colonoscopy) and invasive ... [Read More]
Many Cancer Patients Are Intentionally Using Off-Label Drugs and Supplements (2021 update)
For background on this subject, read my previous post (below). Thanks in large part to Jane McLelland (author of the How to Starve Cancer book and online video course), Care Oncology (COC) and Facebook groups, the lay public and cancer community ... [Read More]
Cancer Cells are the Seeds and the Body is the Soil
It is NOT a new concept that if you can make your body less conducive to cancer growth you will have a much lower risk of cancer development, growth and metastasis. One of the greatest minds in the history of modern medicine (Dr Stephen Paget) ... [Read More]
Dr. Lawenda’s DIY Radiation Esophagitis Elixir
Radiation esophagitis is one of the most painful toxicities for patients undergoing treatment for cancers in the spine (cervical and thoracic), central chest and upper abdomen. Whenever possible, your radiation oncologist will minimize the dose to ... [Read More]
My Approach to Intermittent Fasting for Health Optimization
Dr. Brian Lawenda explains how he uses blood sugar levels to help tailor intermittent fasting to improve metabolic health. ... [Read More]
My Functional Medicine Approach in Oncology
Dr. Lawenda briefly explains how functional medicine is used in his oncology practice to help optimize general health outcomes, cancer outcomes and quality of life in his patients. ASSESSMENTS:Nutrient testing (vitamins, minerals, amino acids, ... [Read More]
Natural Radiation and Chemotherapy Enhancers
While the clinical evidence on each of these is scant, the most promising compounds based on preclinical or clinical data suggest that the following may increase the effectiveness (and often, decrease the side effects/toxicity) of chemotherapy and ... [Read More]
Dr. Lawenda’s DIY Radiation Skin Protection Spray
When undergoing radiation therapy we often counsel our patients to use various skin moisturizing products, such as creams and lotions, 3-4 times per day, to help minimize the redness, peeling and blistering that may develop during a course of ... [Read More]
Optimized Health Composite Score and Consulting
EVERYONE should know their functional health status. I am now offering a remote (domestic and international) lab testing, self-quantification and consulting service to anyone, with or without a history of cancer. Implementing a cohesive, ... [Read More]
Prostate Cancer Basics Online Course
Dr. Brian Lawenda briefly introduces the Prostate Cancer Basics online course. He developed this easy to understand course to help patients learn more about their diagnosis of prostate cancer, the most common treatment options, side effects/risks and ... [Read More]
Breast Cancer Basics Online Course
Dr. Brian Lawenda developed this easy to understand course to help patients learn more about their diagnosis of breast cancer, the most common treatment options (as recommended by the National Comprehensive Cancer Network expert panel), side ... [Read More]
Skin Cancer Signs, Symptoms and Self-Exam
In this short video, Dr. Brian Lawenda discusses signs and symptoms of the 3 most common types of skin cancer (basal cell and squamous cell carcinomas and melanoma). Everyone should do a monthly skin self-examination, and you'll see how this is ... [Read More]
Biohacking Your Stress: Breathing and Heart Rate Variability
In these stressful times, using simple, relaxation techniques can be very helpful to reduce your “fight or flight” nervous system activity and increase your heart rate variability (HRV). Increased HRV is associated with superior immune function, as ... [Read More]
Delayed Routine Cancer Screening: Know These Cancer Signs and Symptoms
Most routine cancer screenings are being delayed during the COVID pandemic to reduce the burden on the healthcare system. It is therefore very important to be aware of the signs and symptoms that could indicate the presence of cancer. In this ... [Read More]
Routine Cancer Screening During The Pandemic
One of the many casualties of the COVID crisis are the millions of individuals who are unable to get timely cancer screenings for an unknown amount of time due to cancelled or rescheduled appointments: —colorectal cancer (colonoscopies) —breast ... [Read More]
Tips To Help Cancer Patients Stay out of the Emergency Room
Staying out of the ER and urgent care in the COVID era is even more important these days. Many infections are believed to occur in the hospital through droplet exposure. Here are my TIPS for anyone with cancer: 1) Reduce your risks for ... [Read More]
Cologuard: Non-Invasive Colorectal Cancer Screening Stool DNA Test
Colon and rectal cancer screening can be done in the safety and convenience of your home. See my 2-minute video. The Cologuard DNA stool test is a non-invasive option for eligible patients, >/= 45 years of age (covered by many insurance ... [Read More]
What Should I Eat During and after Cancer? (version 1.2020)
One of the most common question my patients ask me is "what should I eat" during and after my cancer treatment. To answer this question requires knowing more about the specifics of each individual, such as: What type of cancer treatments are ... [Read More]
Why You Should Do A Self Breast Exam
Routine breast cancer screening with mammograms and other imaging studies is currently being deferred due to concerns relating to the COVID-19 pandemic. While the use of screening mammograms save lives, there is controversy on recommending ... [Read More]
Video or Phone Integrative Oncology Consultations with Dr. Brian Lawenda
If you are overwhelmed, confused or don’t know which integrative oncology approaches to pursue for your cancer care, you are not alone. Dr. Brian Lawenda is a Harvard trained radiation oncologist, integrative oncologist and an expert in functional ... [Read More]
How to Support Your Immune System
The most important immune supportive approaches are not supplements, but lifestyle modifications: Get adequate sleepDo at least 30 minutes/day of dedicated stress reductionMaximize your intake of nutrient dense foods (great article)Minimize toxic ... [Read More]